Mail-bag fastener.



No 715,495. Patented Dec. 9, |902.

C. A. & F. L. MERRILL.

MAIL BAG FASTENER.

(Application filed Apr, 19. 1902.1

4(Nu Nudel.)

l UNITED STATES PATENT OEEICE.

CIIARLES A. MERRILL AND FRANK L. MERRILL, OF NORA SPRINGS, IOWA.

MAIL-BAG SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patentr No. 715,495,dated December 9, 1902.

Application led April 19, 1902.

Serial llo.103,822. (No model.)

along the inner edges of the member are .T0 all whom, t may concern,.- 1

Be it known vthat we, CHARLES A. MERRILL and FRANK L. MERRILL, citizensof the United.

' States, residing at Nora Springs, in the county of Floyd and State ofIowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Mail- BagFasteners; and we do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear,and exact description ofthe invention, such as will enable othersskilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to improvements in fastenings forl mail-bags, andis designed, primarily, to secure the ends of the ropes or draw-strings.

The improvement consists of a pair of hinged plates having formed in onesideways for the reception of the designating-card and on the companionplate a slot is provided to receive a staple, whereby a padlock or thelike may be used to effectually prevent unauthorized persons fromgaining access to the bag. Y

It is our purpose to construct a fastening whereby the ends of the ropeswill be securely clamped thereby and utilize the padlock-staple as atemporary means of fastening the rope between the hinged members.

Many other objectsand advantages will be hereinafter referred to, and beparticularly pointed out in the claims.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a perspective view of a mail-bag, showingvthe application of our invention. Fig. 2 is a face view looking from theopposite side. Fig. 3 is -a vertical transverse section, and Fig. 4 isal perspective view of the fastener thrown open.

The numeral 1 indicates a mail-bag, 2 the draw-strings thereof, and 3our improved fastener. l

The fastener comprises two members 4 and 5, hinged as at 6. The member 4has a lip 7 at its outer end which is providedwith two openings 8 andtwo parallel ways 9 on each side to receive the ordinarydesignating-card 9a, and swiveled intermediate these ways is a staple oreye l0. The member 5 is approximately the same shape as the member 4 andis provided with a slot 1l to receive the staple 10, and at its oppositeend and on the inner side is a corrugated surface 12, and adjacentthereto is a perforation 13. Extending parallel ridges 14 to insure therope being confined between the members. f

The draw-strings 2 after they have been passed through the eyes ofv themail-bag, as

shown in Fig. I, are passed through the perforation 13 in the member 5and openings 8inv the member 4 and are knotted. The mailbag having beenfilled and it is desired to close the same the member 5 is swung down onthe strings, the staple or eye '10 passing freely through the slot 1l,whereupon said eye is given a half-turn, which locks the two members ina closed position. When the two members are thus closed, it is evidentthe corrugated surface 12 will bite into the rope and prevent itsslipping, and in addition thereto there is a binding action between theAwalls of the slot 13 and the hinge 6, and to further insure the ropebeing confined in case it should buckle when being applied the ridges 14have a tendency to keep said rope within its bounds. The card is nowapplied in the ways 9, and after the padlock 18 is fastened in the eyel10 the bag is ready to be shipped.

lIt will therefore be seen that we provide a mail-bag fastener whichwill enable theoperators to more readily do the work and at the sametime add to their convenience and operation. A further advantage is inthe fact that a bag may be temporarily fastened with considerable easeand with as much safety as when the padlock is applied. The inventionalso is capable of being used when the ropes are wet or frozen, which isa cause of no little inconvenience in handling the mail-bags of the typenow used.

The invention is simple in'construction, durable in character, and itsadvantages will be appreciated by those skilled in the art to which it"appertains.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new is 1. Afastening for holding the rope of Inailbags, comprising a pair of hingedmembers, one of the members being provided with an opening adjacent tothe hinge for the passage of the rope or the like andthe other memberhaving an opening a distance fromv the hinge for the passage of the saidrope, an engaging surface on one of the members for IOO gripping therope when the members are closed, and means for locking the memberstogether, substantially as described.

2. A fastener for the holding-rope of mailbags, comprising a pair ofhinged members, one oi said members having a pair of openings for thepassage of the rope, a companion member being formed with a singleopening for the reception of the rope, a corrugated surface adjacentsaid single opening, and means for locking the two members together,substantially as described.

3. A fastening for holding the rope of mailbags, comprising a pair ofhinged members, one of the members being provided with an openingadjacent to the hinge for the passage of the rope or the like and theother member having an opening a distance from the hinge for the passageof the said rope, an engaging surface on one of the members for grippingthe rope When the members are closed, longitudinal ridges applied to oneof said members for keeping the rope Within bounds when the members areclosed, and means for looking the members together, substantially asspecified.

4. A fastening device for the rope of mailbags, comprising a pair ofmembers hinged together, one of said members having a lip at one en'dwhich has formed therein a pair of openings, a staple swiveled to thesaid member, the other member having an opening at one end and acorrugated surface adjacent said opening, a slot being formed for thepassage of the staple, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof we aliix our signatures in presence of twoWitnesses.

oHAs. A. MERRILL. [n a] FRANK L. MERRILL. [1.. sg]

VVit-nesses:

M. JEAN 'W1LKINsoN, L. H. PIEHN.

